Photograph Yer Noggins !!!

[Ferdinand]

There was a good education on how not to do self-build on Homes under the Hammer this morning.

 

It is the first example in this programme, and about 20 minutes in for the outcome.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08ny6bx

 

My favourite:

 

'I photographed all the noggins, and then deleted all the photos.  Then when my plumber asked where my noggins were, they were harder to find."

 

And a lot more.

 

To be fair, they just about broke even ignoring their own time, and plan another one.

Edited April 25, 2017 by Ferdinand

[jack]

Amazing they thought they'd squeeze two semis onto that plot given how little space even a very modest 3 bed house leaves around itself.

 

They paid around £313k to build that house.  Seems a lot for what it is.  I wonder how much all the "unforeseen" groundworks contributed to that?

 

My gut feeling is that they've overcapitalised, because their idea of what was needed in a property to reach the "top" of the market (value-wise) in this area was off target.  

 

Interested in your thoughts on this @Ferdinand

[ToughButterCup]

3 hours ago, jack said:

[...]

I wonder how much all the "unforeseen" groundworks contributed to that?

[...]

 

"We dug down two and a half meters."  She thought that she would meet her family in Australia if they'd needed to dig any more. LMAO in an unkind way

 

Just goes to show, it's the quality of the preparation that counts

[Jeremy Harris]

I've just watched it.  I think it's a classic example of how not to self-build.  They clearly did sod-all research on the land, so hit high costs with ground works, they've built a medium spec house in a low spec area, never a good idea, as it's almost always the local area that sets the max price.  I think they'll be lucky to get their investment back, to be honest, which means they've effectively spent a couple of years doing nothing but spending money in order to gain experience.

 

None of the interior looked particularly "high spec" to me.  Laminate flooring, basic veneered doors, painted MDF skirtings and architraves, and what looked like a budget kitchen with laminate worktops.  I'd guess it's the sort of finish the majority of new budget builds end up with, and one that will start looking tired within a few years.

 

Even given that it's within London commuting distance, I'm not at all sure that it's worth the £420k they spent on it, given the surrounding area.  As they say, house value is all about location, location, location.....................

[jack]

23 minutes ago, JSHarris said:

... they've built a medium spec house in a low spec area, never a good idea, as it's almost always the local area that sets the max price.  

 

Exactly.

 

I still want to know where £313k went. Anyone want to take a stab at the internal area of the house and the size of the plot?

[Jeremy Harris]

31 minutes ago, jack said:

I still want to know where £313k went.

 

My guess is that their ground works ate up a fair bit of the budget.  Had they been sensible, and done some basic checks as to where sewers, pipes, cables etc were under the plot (all of which could have been done before the auction, in all probability) and done a bit of research as to what used to be on the site in years gone buy, they could almost certainly saved themselves a lot of grief.

 

I suspect the reason that they managed to buy it at auction was because there was no local builder will to pay anything like £107k for the plot, knowing that if he/she did then there would be no profit in it.

Edited April 25, 2017 by JSHarris

[jack]

Probably right. Always amazes me when amateurs are willing to buy at auction without a huge amount of research. If you're the highest bidder, it means that no professional is willing to pay what you're willing to pay. Fine if it's your dream home etc, but if you're hoping to make money...